BRISTOL, Conn. — Falmouth Little League’s season came to a sudden end Thursday afternoon at the New England Regional, and Manager Matt Rogers had a quick explanation: His team ran out of pitching.

Cumberland American of Rhode Island erupted for nine runs in the top of the eighth inning and defeated Falmouth 13-4 in a regional semifinal at Breen Field.

Falmouth fought back from a 3-0 deficit and forced extra innings on Sam Manganello’s RBI single with two outs in the bottom of the sixth. But the Maine champs took themselves out of possible big innings by running into two outs at the plate and another at third base.

“I said coming in here that I felt like if we played the way we can, we can compete with anybody, and we certainly showed it today,” Rogers said.

“We were running a little bit on fumes with our pitchers. We’ve got some arm issues and not everybody is able to pitch right now. We gave it everything we had and it just came up short.”

Cumberland American will face Fairfield American of Connecticut in the regional final Saturday. Fairfield advanced with a 9-0 win over Barnstable, Massachusetts.

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Cumberland averaged 11.5 runs in its first four games in the tournament but was held in check by Maine starter Michael Simonds, who allowed four runs – two earned – and four hits over five innings.

“They kept us off balance and we kept smashing the ball into the ground,” Cumberland starter Addison Kopack said.

Cumberland used Trey Bourque’s two-run homer in the second and the speed of Nick Croteau, who walked and eventually scored on a passed ball in the third, to jump out to its 3-0 lead.

Falmouth began its comeback on Alex Smith’s RBI single in the bottom of the third and tied it on Simonds’ two-run single in the fifth.

Smith went 3 for 3 and finished at .667 (8 for 12) in the tournament.

Cumberland regained the lead on Kopack’s fielder’s choice grounder in the top of the sixth, but Connor Coffin took over for Simonds and escaped a bases-loaded, no-out jam to keep the deficit at one.

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Ike Kiely reached on an infield hit with one out in the bottom of the sixth, moved up on a wild pitch and scored the tying run on Smith’s single.

In the top of the eighth, Coffin allowed the first two batters to reach and was pulled with a 1-2 count on Kopack after feeling a twinge in his arm.

“I didn’t want him to stay out there,” Rogers said. “(It’s a) 1-2 count, I know, but I’d rather lose than hurt one of these kids’ arms.”

Manganello hit Kopack with his first pitch, then walked Tyler Provost to force home the go-ahead run before giving up a two-run single to Sean Meers and an RBI single to Bourque.

Rogers used three pitchers in the inning. Jayden Struble (4 for 5) capped the uprising with a three-run homer off Jackson Quinn.

“The kids know where they were,” Rogers said. “They know they were a win and maybe an inning away from Williamsport.”

Croteau, the second of three Cumberland pitchers, earned the win, allowing one unearned run over three innings.


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